Summary
- Konami announced a remake of Silent Hill 2 and other projects, fueling speculation of a revival of the Metal Gear Solid franchise.
- The Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Volume 1 will include the first five canonical games and bonus material, indicating a bright future for the franchise. MGS Delta is also coming, which is a full remake of Snake Eater.
- However, a Metal Gear Solid 6 is unlikely due to the absence of Hideo Kojima and the challenge of continuing the story after the conclusive endings of previous games.
For some time it had been rumored that Konami had something in the pipeline for the Metal Gear Solid franchise. After a hiatus from the AAA gaming space, the publisher announced a remake of Silent Hill 2 as well as several other projects in the long-dormant franchise. This only furthered the speculation that a revival of the iconic stealth action series was on the way, and fans did not have to wait long for an announcement.
Earlier this year, Konami officially unveiled a remake of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater as well as the Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Volume 1. The latter will include the first five canonical games in the franchise as well as bonus material. The remake of MGS3 doesn't have a release date, but all of this points to a bright future for the franchise. Unfortunately, MGS6 likely isn't on the docket.
Why Metal Gear Solid Has A Bright Future Ahead of It
Whatever plans Konami has for Metal Gear Solid are being kept under wraps, but it's not difficult to guess what direction the series is heading. Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Volume 1 has a confirmed release date, but there is no way to accurately predict what the publisher has planned for Volume 2. A release date has yet to be confirmed, but there are several titles that will likely be included if everything goes well.
The collection will likely include the fourth installment, Guns of the Patriots, and both parts of the fifth game. Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker and Portable Ops would also be contenders for the second volume considering how critical they are to the overall story. Depending on how generous Konami is with the collection, players may even see Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance and other lesser know spin-off titles included as well.
In addition to the collections, it is possible that the publisher has long terms plans for the remakes as well. More Metal Gear Solid Delta remakes would have a very clear direction to go on following the release of Snake Eater. It would not be beyond reason to assume that the publisher may try to remake all the games in some way, shape, or form, in chronological order. Even if half of this were to come true, it would point to a bright future for the franchise. Unfortunately, this future likely will not include Metal Gear Solid 6.
Why Metal Gear Solid 6 is Extremely Unlikely
The most notable issue with Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater will be the lack of Hideo Kojima, which would also apply to any sequels. The games are very much Kojima's creation, and his leadership leaves a distinct mark on whatever project he's in charge of. Anything that is made in the franchise without his involvement will undoubtedly be different in a very noticeable way. Not to mention any sequel without him and his team will automatically generate controversy and renew stories about his less-than-amicable departure from Konami.
The other issue has to do with the story of Metal Gear Solid. The story of the series was all about Big Boss and Solid Snake for the most part. The fourth game saw Big Boss finally die and heavily implied that Snake would also be gone within a year. Metal Gear Solid 5 also brought Big Boss' story full circle to the original Metal Gear games. Because of this, it's not likely that either story could be continued in a meaningful way. Any addition to them would run the risk of undoing the powerful endings of the 4th and 5th games, which is a difficult sell at best.
Currently, there isn't truly a way to know what Konami has planned for Metal Gear Solid. With the upcoming remake and the collections it's clear that the franchise has a bright future. However, given the marketing and story challenged a sixth main game would bring, this bright future likely does not include such an installment.
Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater is in development for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.